BERNE  After a two-year hiatus from town politics, Kevin Crosier was re-appointed to the position of Berne Supervisor by a unanimous vote Wednesday night.

“I love being supervisor; it was that simple,” Crosier told The Enterprise when asked why he applied to fill the vacancy. “I’m looking forward to working with the board. It’s a great board, and we’ve got some enthusiastic people with a lot of good ideas. I’ve had a lot of ideas I’ve been mulling over in my head the last 18 months.”

George Gebe, a Democrat who won the race for supervisor in 2009, announced his resignation this fall for reasons relating to his family.

“My age doesn’t help,” said Gebe, who was 59 when he retired last year. “I’ve had some problems along the way, as far as my health. Maybe that brought me to some realizations, too.”

Peter Vance, whose term as town councilman ended on Dec. 31, was going to retire at the end of the year, but was appointed as supervisor soon after Gebe’s retirement. The board had originally planned on forming a committee to help find and select a replacement for Vance who would serve through the end of 2012, but decided later to keep Vance in office until a replacement was chosen this week, following an interview process. Other applicants interviewed were planning board Chairman Gerard Chartier, and planning board member Timothy Lippert.

In November 2012, Crosier will have to run to keep the supervisor’s post, and finish out the remaining year of Gebe’s four-year term. Another election will then be held in 2013, and the winner will begin a new four-year term.

In the summer of 2009, Crosier, an Albany firefighter, decided he would not be running for re-election as supervisor that fall because he wanted to spend more time with his family. He had been supervisor for two four-year terms. An enrolled Democrat, he ran on the Republican line to defeat the long-time incumbent, Alan Zuk.

“When you do public service, the biggest sacrifice is usually made by the family,” said Crosier said this week. “But, it was my daughter who actually said one night, ‘Dad, you really miss being town supervisor, don’t you?’ And I said, ‘Yea, but I left because I wanted to spend more time with you.’ And she said, ‘You did a good job, Dad. You should go back. I’ll be OK.’ So, it was my daughter and wife who both saw that I enjoyed the job, and they were willing to make that sacrifice.”